Vulnerabilities and exploits

My goal wasn’t to review the techniques of elevating system privileges. Here, I wanted to look at the overall picture and talk about the whole range of Windows operating systems in all their diversity dating back to Windows Vista, but without discussing specific versions.

Confidential data can be protected by encrypting traffic at wireless access points. In fact, this method of protection is now considered essential for all Wi-Fi networks. But what actually happens in practice?

In September 2016, while researching a new wave of attacks, we found an interesting target which appeared to constantly receive spearphishes, a practice we commonly describe as a “magnet of threats”. Among all the attacks received by this magnet of threats, which included various older Office exploits such as CVE-2012-0158, one of them attracted our attention.

Yet another year has flown past and, as far as notable infosec happenings are concerned, this is one for the history books. Drama, intrigue and exploits have plagued 2016 and, as we take stock of some of the more noteworthy stories, we once again cast our gaze forward to glean the shapes of the 2017 threat landscape.

With the arrival of Apple Pay and Samsung Pay in Russia, many are wondering just how secure these payment systems are, and how popular they are likely to become. In our opinion, these technologies require a more detailed examination and a separate evaluation of the threats they face.

The most popular mobile Trojan in the third quarter of 2016 was Trojan-Banker.AndroidOS.Svpeng.q. During the quarter, the number of users attacked by it grew almost eightfold.

Trojan-Ransom.AndroidOS.Fusob.h remained the most popular mobile Trojan-Ransomware in the third quarter, accounting for nearly 53% of users attacked by mobile ransomware.

A few days ago, Microsoft published the “critical” MS16-120 security bulletin with fixes for vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Office, Skype for Business, Silverlight and Microsoft Lync. One of the vulnerabilities – CVE-2016-3393 – was reported to Microsoft by Kaspersky Lab in September 2016.

Earlier today we became aware of a malicious website delivering Petya through the Hunter exploit kit. While there is nothing special about yet another exploit kit page, this one caught our attention because it mimics the index page of our sinkhole systems.

The report comprises two papers in which we analyze all existing methods of authentication used in ATMs and those expected to be used in the near future, including: contactless authentication through NFC, one-time password authentication and biometric authentication systems, as well as potential vectors of attacks using malware, through to network attacks and attacks on hardware components.

The telecoms sector is under fire on all sides – hit by direct attacks on organizations and networks, indirect attacks in search of subscribers, and collateral damage from unrelated, targeted campaigns. This report reveals the many layers of vulnerability.

August 13, 2016 saw the beginning of a truly bizarre episode. A new identity going under the name ‘ShadowBrokers’ came onto the scene claiming to possess files belonging to the apex predator of the APT world, the Equation Group.

In the second quarter of 2016, Kaspersky Lab’s web antivirus detected 16,119,489 unique malicious objects: scripts, exploits, executable files, etc. 54,539,948 unique URLs were recognized as malicious by web antivirus components.

Bankers and encryptors, ransomware and spyware, old and new exploits; APT attacks, ATM infection, spear phishing and fraud targeting large numbers of users – cybercriminals continue their hunt for money and information

This review consists of three parts devoted to the most prominent new Windows 10 features that affect security. We use examples to demonstrate how Windows 10 protection technologies work and how they can be complemented by third-party solutions to improve system security.